Upper extremity ischemia treated with tissue repair cells from adult bone marrow

Background Unreconstructable critical ischemia with gangrene of the upper extremity is rarely due to atherosclerosis alone, and few treatment options exist. We describe a patient with gangrene of both hands as a result of unreconstructable atherosclerotic disease of both upper extremities who was successfully treated with tissue repair cells (TRCs) produced from the patient's bone marrow. Methods A patient with type 1 diabetes was referred with bilateral upper extremity digital gangrene due to unreconstructable forearm and hand atherosclerosis. He was evaluated for therapeutic angiogenesis using TRCs. Results Following the intramuscular injection of TRCs produced from autologous bone marrow stem cells, the patient demonstrated improved arterial perfusion and a durable clinical response with healing of all amputation sites and cessation of pain. Conclusions The production of TRCs results in the expansion of stem and early progenitor cells, including CD90+ mesenchymal cells and endothelial progenitor cells. This is the first reported case of end-stage upper extremity ischemia treated with TRCs harvested from adult bone marrow.